


You Could Have Called

by ProfessorDumbleBrows



Series: RinHaru Week 2014 [3]
Category: Free!
Genre: M/M, RinHaru fluff, different moments from their lives, summaries are hard
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-11-23
Updated: 2014-11-23
Packaged: 2018-02-26 16:11:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,513
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2658251
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ProfessorDumbleBrows/pseuds/ProfessorDumbleBrows
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A series of moments through their lives where Rin should have called Haruka. When he finally calls Haru, he runs into problems each time. But in the end, he didn't mind because he still got to talk to him in the end.</p>
            </blockquote>





	You Could Have Called

**Author's Note:**

> I was distracted while writing this one. Hope you guys still enjoy!  
> Day 3: Blue- You Could Have Called

Haruka yawned as he waited at the bus stop. Practice was over and for once he was too exhausted to jog home as he had been doing since before Rin left for Australia. Makoto offered to take the bus with him, but Haruka said he wanted to be alone.

Alone...

That was something he's been feeling since Rin left. Ever since the first time they met again during winter last year. Even when he's surrounded by his friends and teammates, he couldn't help but feel it. They didn't have whatever that spark was that Rin had. He closed his eyes, breathing in the chilly December air before opening them again. And as he opened them, he tensed up from shock. Magenta hair, familiar coat and scarf...

"R-Rin?!" He called out without much thought.

The young boy who was walking on the other sidewalk paused at hearing his name. He hesitated before turning his head to look in the direction of Haruka's voice. Haruka looked to both ends of the street before crossing and meeting up with the boy.

"...You're visiting again." He stated, careful with his words for he did not want to repeat last year's events.

Rin looked off to the side. "Yeah." He mumbled, sighing then frowning as he dug his hands into his pockets. "I visit every winter..."

"How come you never tell me when you visit? Or any of us?"

A shrug.

Haruka frowned. It was obvious Rin was still taking things hard, but he didn't know just what he was going through.

"You should have called to let me know when you got here."

"Why do you care if I'm here or not?!" Rin snapped. He didn't wait for an answer as he added, "I have to go." And then he walked away.

Haruka gulped, his chest tightening but his expression remaining calm. The bus came but he didn't move. It was only after it passed when he began to walk; this time deciding on walking home after all.

~ * ~

Sometime after the Iwatobi boys ran into Rin at the old swim club, Haruka found himself facing Rin again at the park. This time he was alone, whereas Rin was walking with a teenager with gray hair.

"Nitori, give us a few minutes." He said, and the boy complied with a "Y-Yes, Matsuoka-senpai!" before walking away.

Rin looked down at Haruka — who was sitting on a bench with his sketchbook in his lap.

"How long have you been back?" Haruka asked, deciding not to waste any time.

"...A while."

"You didn't tell me. You didn't tell anyone."

"It's not your business to know."

"Rin..."

"You really haven't changed at all, have you, Haru?" Despite the phrase seeming fond, the tone it was laced in was nothing but disgust. Rin was scowling, his expression reinforcing his tone.

Haruka didn't know what to say. So instead he looked down to his sketchbook and tapped his mechanical pencil against the page. Awkward silence came between them with the exception of the sounds surrounding them.

"You should have called to let us know at least..." Haruka mumbled.

Rin stared at him. He shook his head, clicked his tongue in feigned annoyance, and walked away, leaving that as that.

~ * ~

The summer break after their last second year relay finally came around. The Iwatobi boys saw Rin more. And on top of that, they saw Rin smiling more. He wasn't the same old Rin that Makoto, Nagisa, and Haruka knew, but he definitely was close enough after some time.

The last day of summer break, Haruka decided to spend time in Makoto's home. Makoto had air conditioning as of late and they haven't spent time with just each other since the break began. Both reasons for him to come over and spend the night. Haruka was sitting on Makoto's floor, his back against the bed as he focused on a sketch. Makoto was reading a new volume of a manga he bought recently.

After some time, the brunet spoke, "Hey, you know Rin has been asking about you, right?"

A hum. "What for?"

"To find out how you're doing. He said he hasn't been speaking with you much recently."

"He has my phone number. He knows where I live. It's his fault."

"Haru..." His tone was soft but was still used to scold his friend nonetheless.

Sighing, he responded, "Okay. I'll try talking to him first."

"Thank you, Haru." Makoto said, looking away from his manga to look at the named male. "Though I think he really does want to talk with you. He always asks about you when we hang out."

Haruka stood silent. His hand paused over the paper and his chest tightened up. Shaking his head, he didn't respond and continued sketching.

~ * ~

Months passed since summer break. School started again and the swim club made sure to be on top of their new tasks. Recruitment, new regimens, and scheduling joint practices. It was hard for everyone at both Iwatobi and Samezuka, but the boys managed just fine as soon as events settled into place.

Haruka had been keeping in touch with Rin as he promised Makoto, but it seemed that Rin still wasn’t willing to be the one to make the first move. He didn’t mind it in the beginning, but it was hard for Haru to keep up with initiating a conversation when he wasn’t used to talking much begin with.

With a sigh, the teen ducked his head under the water of his bath. Engulfed in warmth, he allowed himself to be calmed and distracted from the world around him. And because of this, he did not hear the rare ringing that came from his cell phone. By the time he lifted his head from the water in order to breathe, the ringing ceased.

The next time his phone rang, he was dressed in his pajamas and cooking himself dinner in the kitchen. The obnoxiously loud ring startled him and he flinched before making his way to the living room where he left it. Reading the caller ID, he saw the name on the screen was Rin.

“Huh…” He blinked and then accepted the call, “Hello?”

“Why the fuck didn’t you answer your phone?!” Was the first thing Rin said.

“I was--”

Interrupting, Rin added, “I finally decided to call you and you don’t even answer.”

“Rin. I was taking a bath. My phone was in the living room.”

“...Oh.”

Walking back to the kitchen to check up on his food, Haruka held the phone between his cheek and his shoulder. “Any special reason why you called?”

Instead of a direct answer, Haruka heard muffled words. The voice sounded like Aiichirou and the voice following was none other than Rin scolding him. He sighed and finally answered.

“I wanted to ask if you were available on Saturday. So. Are you available on Saturday?”

Raising his eyebrows in consideration, Haruka took a second to himself to think about it. Flipping his fish, he mentally shrugged. “I think so.”

“Good. A movie and dinner sounds good?”

“Hm… Yeah.”

“It’s a date then.”

Haruka’s eyes widened. “A what?”

“A date.”

“Rin, you--”

“Yes, Haru. This is me asking you on a date.”

Now feeling bashful, Haruka didn’t know what to say. However, that didn’t stop Rin from giving him the details he would need to know for Saturday.

~ * ~

Haruka looked down at his watch as he stood outside of the movie theater. People walked past him; either trying to leave or trying to enter the building. He tapped his foot a few times and dropped his arm to rest at his side. Rin was ten minutes late and Haru felt his fingertips had become numb from the cold air.

Giving him another minute, he was debating on walking away to either go home or wait inside of the of the nearby cafes. But just as he was about to take a step, Rin was running up to him. Panting softly, he looked at the shorter male with an honest look of apology.

“Sorry. Sorry. Momotarou wouldn’t leave me alone and then the train was late in coming to the station.” He explained.

Narrowing his eyes, the words that had grown familiar to Rin slipped off Haruka’s tongue.

“You could have called to let me know.”

Rin blinked at him before sucking his teeth. “You wanted me to call you?” He asked rhetorically. He dug into his pocket and pulled out his phone, looking for the other’s number and pressing the call button as he glared at him.

No reaction.

...Or rather, no ringtone. No ringtone, no vibrate, not even a reaction to reach into his phone. Rin was sent to voicemail and he hung up immediately.

“Why didn’t you even look at your phone?”

“...I just remembered I left it at home.” Haruka admitted sheepishly.

Giving him a look of disbelief, he stared at him with his mouth slightly agape.

“Son of a…” He started but cut himself off. “Let’s just get on with the night, okay?”

Smiling with amusement, Haruka nodded. “Alright."


End file.
